SPACE — Rivers of hydrogen gas flow out of the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds, two dwarf galaxies located on the outskirts of the Milky Way. The contents of the river, called the Magellan Stream, have puzzled astronomers for decades.
But now, for the first time, the research team was able to find the location of the star in the cloud of gas flow. The discovery not only helps scientists better understand the evolution of the galaxy where the flow originates, but also the distribution of matter in our Milky Way. The study was published in the Astrophysical Journal last October.
Astronomers from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics discovered the stars using the 6.5-meter-long Magellan Baade Telescope at the Las Campanas Observatory in Chile. With the help of detailed maps of the Milky Way from the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Gaia space telescope, researchers focused on the 200 most distant stars in our galaxy, located in the direction of the Magellanic Stream.
They analyzed the spectrum of light emanating from these stars and found the chemical composition of 13 subjects matched the chemical composition of the Magellanic Clouds. The measurements also show the 13 stars are between 150,000 and 400,000 light years from Earth, equivalent to the distance of the Magellan Stream.
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This flow was first discovered in the 1970s. It is spread across the Southern Sky region, which is equivalent to the size of 300 full moons when seen from Earth. But even though it is very large, it requires some sensitive equipment to see it.
Astronomers think the gas that forms the flow was torn from the Magellanic Cloud galaxy due to the gravitational pull of the Milky Way. These new observations show how these streams interact with our galaxy. Currently, the stream can be seen falling into the Milky Way.
“With these results and other similar findings, we hope to gain a much greater understanding of the formation of the Magellanic Stream and Magellanic Clouds, as well as their interactions with our galaxy past and present,” said Charlie Conroy, Professor of Astronomy at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics ( CfA). He is one of the authors of the study.
In contrast to the Magellanic Stream, the Magellanic Clouds have been known since ancient times because they can be clearly seen with the naked eye. Even so, astronomers still have many questions about the origin and history of the two galaxies that apparently collided with the Milky Way. Mapping and modeling the Magellanic Stream could improve understanding of its source galaxies, whose past trajectories are believed to be traceable.
“The beauty of having a broad stellar stream like the Magellanic Stream is that we can now do so many astrophysical investigations with it,” said Vedant Chandra, PhD student in astronomy and astrophysics at CfA and lead author of the study.
“As spectroscopic surveys continue and discover more stars, we are excited to see what other surprises will lie ahead on the outskirts of our galaxy.”
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Scientists think that when hydrogen gas from these streams enters the Milky Way, it creates the right conditions for star formation. By analyzing the data, the researchers also found the flow was twice as large as they had expected. This means that the Milky Way has to swallow more gas than previously calculated.
“The Magellanic Current is the largest source of calories in the Milky Way, providing our breakfast, lunch and dinner,” said Ana Bonaca, one of the study authors and a former postdoctoral fellow at CfA. The new estimate of the mass of the Magellanic Stream means that the Milky Way’s weight will also increase.
2023-12-01 21:57:00
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